Glossary

This glossary serves as a directory of terms used commonly in the Astra Planeta canon, both scientific and colloquial.

A - B - C - D - E - F - G - H - I - J - K - L - M - N - O - P - Q - R - S - T - U - V - W - X - Y - Z

A

[the] Abyss - (n.) the vacuum of space. (see "black," "dark," and "void.")

Accel - (n.) short for "acceleration;" the rate of change in an object's velocity.

Amalgam - (proper n.) the common interstellar creole spoken by United Spacefaring Sophonts Coalition member species.

Angle - (n.) right ascension; the radial x-axis of celestial coordinates.

B

Belter - (n.) a native or naturalized resident of an asteroid habitat; more specifically a human inhabitant of the Sol Belt.

[the] Big nothing - (uncommon n.) the vacuum of space. (see "abyss," "black," "dark," and "void.")

[the] Black - (n.) the vacuum of space. (see "abyss," "dark," and "void.")

Bowshock - (n.) the wave of high-energy particles caught in the fore section of a warp bubble in transit.

Brachistochrone - (n.) the shortest possible orbital path between two objects, enabled by constant acceleration.

C

C - (n.) the speed of light in vacuum, roughly 300 million m/s.

Crash couch - (n.) a specially padded chair with tight straps and automated IV injectors used to dampen the effects of high acceleration on organic beings. (see "juice" and "lethe.")

Crash tank - (n.) a tank of perfluorocarbon fluid used to dampen the effects of high acceleration on organic beings. (see "fakedrown" and "wet hell.")

Cryo - (n.) short for "cryogenic stasis," the process of using specialized medical technology to induce reversible near-total metabolic pause in a living carbon-based organism.

D

[the] Dark - (n.) the vacuum of space. (see "abyss," "black," and "void.")

Delta-V - (n.) the total change in velocity a spacecraft is capable of when fully fueled. (also shortened to "DV.")

Dry mass - (n.) the total mass of a spacecraft minus the mass of its fuel.

E

Ecliptic - (n.) the cartographic plane to which most of a planetary system's orbits align.

Ecliptic crossing - (n.) a point where an inclined object's orbit passes through the ecliptic plane. (see "inclination.")

Exosuit - (n.) a full-body garment containing a layer of fluid that compresses and thermoregulates the body omnidirectionally to counter the effects of high acceleration and the freezing vacuum of space. (see "p-suit.")

F

Fakedrown - (v.) the colloquial term for liquid breathing, typically in the context of riding out high-G maneuvers in a crash tank. (see "crash tank" and "wet hell.")

FTL - acronym for faster than light. (n.) referring to a warp drive. (adj.) the state of moving faster than light. (see "superluminal.")

G

G - (n.) a standardized measure of gravitational acceleration based on that of Earth, equivalent to 9.8 m/s; frequently used to measure the acceleration of a spacecraft. Most known sophonts can only tolerate approximately 1 G for significant periods of time outside of crash tanks or without blood thickener.

H

Haul - (n.) an interstellar journey, specifically referring to cargo shipments. (see "trek.")

HRV - (n.) acronym for hyperspace relative velocity.

I

Inclination - (n.) the tilt of an object's orbit relative to the ecliptic of its parent body (see "ecliptic.")

J

Juice - (n.) the colloquial name for specialized blood thickener injected into the circulatory system by crash couches to stave off the lethal effects of high acceleration on the organic body. (v.) to be injected with said juice. (see "crash couch" and "lethe.")

Jump - (n.) one transit segment of a multi-segmented haul or trek.

L

Lethe - (n.) a nickname for specialized blood thickener injected into the circulatory system by crash couches, in reference to the unpleasant mind-fogging effect and cold rushing sensation. (see "crash couch" and "juice.")

N

Nullo - (n.) microgravity.

O

Opacity - (n.) visual analogue term for warp factor. (see "transparency.")

P

Pace - (n.) velocity.

P-suit - (n.) short for "pressure suit," a full-body garment containing a layer of fluid that compresses and thermoregulates the body omnidirectionally to counter the effects of high acceleration and the freezing vacuum of space. (see "exosuit.")

Q

Quan - (n.) direct quantum link; more generally, an ansible.

S

Shafthopper - (n.) asteroid miners who specialize in drilling deep into the asteroids they work with.

Sling - (n.) celestial body whose gravity is used to modify a spacecraft's vector through hyperbolic or parabolic flybys; (v.) to use the gravity of a celestial body to modify a spacecraft’s vector.

Sophont - (n.) a living being which demonstrates sapience; more generally, an entire species of sapient beings.

Specific impulse - (n.) the total burn time of a spacecraft engine. (also shortened to "isp.")

Stationeer - (n.) the crew of a space station.

Stationite - (n.) the civilian inhabitants of a space station.

Subluminal - (adj.) moving arbitrarily below the speed of light. (see "c.")

Superluminal - (adj.) moving arbitrarily above the speed of light. (see "c.")

Sweep - (n.) declination; the radial y-axis of celestial coordinates.

T

Transparency - (n.) contiguous with real space. (see "opacity.")

Trek - (n.) an interstellar journey, especially one of an exploratory or otherwise people-moving nature. (see "haul.")

V

Vector - (n.) the direction and/or immediate future path of an object in space.

[the] Void - (n.) the vacuum of space. (see "abyss," "black," and "dark.")

W

Wet mass - (n.) the total mass of a spacecraft and its fuel.

Wet hell - (n.) the colloquial term for a crash tank, in reference to the uniquely unpleasant sensation of liquid breathing. (see "crash tank" and "fakedrown.")